THE Bishop of Swansea & Brecon, the Rt Revd John Lomas, drew the meeting’s attention to the Bench of Bishops’ report. It included a reference to the Sacred Synod service in November, which confirmed the election of Bishop Dorrien Davies to St Davids, and the invitation to Canon David Morris to join the bench in expectation of his appointment as Bishop of Bardsey.

The latter’s appointment was confirmed at a Sacred Synod during the Governing Body’s evening worship at Newport Cathedral, on Wednesday of last week. He will be consecrated on 11 May. Bishop Davies will take responsibility for the Welsh language, tourist engagement, and the provincial GenRus group. Bishop Morris will be responsible for sector ministries.

The Bench had discussed, during the year, the Standing Doctrinal Commission report Walking in Integrity, which explored the nature of authority in the Church; and, consequent on the recommendations of the Monmouth report, it had met the Director of Ministry Development to discuss a three-year programme of training for the bishops; a formalised induction programme; and an approach to ministerial-development review (MDR).

It had received an update on the faculty system review, led by Professor Norman Doe, and had also done further work on revisions to the provincial discernment process.

Other matters included plans for a provincial Advent course, briefings on the work of the Church Growth Fund allocation group, and the conception of an MDR process for those undertaking licensed lay ministries. The Bench had also been closely involved in production of Daily with God.